Amanda Gorman
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 20: Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman speaks at the inauguration of U.S. President Joe Biden on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol on January 20, 2021 in Washington, DC. During today's inauguration ceremony Joe Biden becomes the 46th president of the United States. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)

22-Year-Old Los Angeles Poet Amanda Gorman Steals the Show at President Biden’s Inauguration

Poetry is an underrated art form. And when it comes to presidential inaugurations, the wordsmiths rarely get the spotlight they deserve. But at President Joe Biden’s inauguration, Los Angeles poet Amanda Gordon stole the show with her powerful poem “The Hill We Climb.”

An excerpt of the 22-year-old’s brilliance:

“We’ve seen a force that would shatter our nation rather than share it,

Would destroy our country if it meant delaying democracy.

And this effort very nearly succeeded.

But while democracy can be periodically delayed,

It can never be permanently defeated.

In this truth, in this faith, we trust.

For while we have our eyes on the future,

history has its eyes on us.”

Clearly, Gorman is wise beyond her years. Her time at the mic was even more impressive because she is a descendant of slaves, the daughter of a single mother, and grew up with a speech impediment.

After her appearance, her social media following unsurprisingly skyrocketed. She boasts over 1.1 million followers on Instagram and another 635K on Twitter, where everyone was singing the youngest inaugural poet’s praises.

Truth and eloquence are back in the White House, people. It’s about time.

Cover Photo: Rob Carr / Staff (Getty Images)

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